Night On Set ❁ COLIFER

Chapter 23 ❁ Emergency room chats

Jen's POV

"Okay, I'm going to try to lift you up by your arms," Colin says, positioning himself better so he can grab hold of me.

I nod, but the smile on my face is gone now. This is the part I'm not looking forward to, but I know I can't stay in this tub forever.

I very slowly turn towards him. Then, clenching my teeth even harder, I give him a little nod and grab his arms; he pulls me up, holding me under my armpits.

And it hurts. It freaking hurts. I'm moaning the entire four seconds it takes him to get me up, but I bite my bottom lip to keep it to a minimum.

When I'm standing on my legs again, feeling very wobbly and unstable, the frown on his face is even deeper.

"You okay?" he asks again.

I nod, still biting my lip, because I know I'll cry out in agony if I open my mouth. He still hasn't let go of me, and now he helps me step out of the tub very carefully.

"You know, I stick with my opinion on bathtubs," he says when I'm standing on the little bath mat.

"Which is?"

"When you take a bath you're basically just lying in your own dirt. So, thanks, but not thanks. They should ban them."

"That's exactly why I take always take a shower before I draw a bath," I say as he wraps the towel around me again.

Our eyes meet and he smiles. "I'll get you something to wear."

"Just grab something simple, a shirt and some sweats. Underwear is in the bottom drawer," I add.

"Got it." He disappears to my bedroom after that.

And it isn't until he's gone that I realize what I just said.

I stand there looking at myself in the mirror, looking absolutely miserable, and the part of my brain that isn't occupied with my ribs is worrying about the underwear drawer.

He's going to pick something. This is the last thing I should be worrying about, but I can't stop the very vivid train of thoughts; he's literally going to pick out the underwear I'm going to be wearing.

When he's back, it takes the joint effort of both of us to get me dressed. He starts blushing like crazy when he hands me my panties, and it's the first moment we both seem to realize I'm almost completely naked in front of him.

This is getting a little too intimate.

He pretends to be busy with the bath curtain while I step into my panties. I put all my energy into getting it on, but once that's done, tears are burning in my eyes and I know I need him for the rest of my clothes.

I take a minute to recover once I'm all dressed. I've been avoiding his gaze for the past five minutes, but now I look up at him.

"Thank you, Colin," I say.

We stare at each other for a moment before he blinks. "No problem. Now come on, let's get you to the emergency room."

* * *

Colin takes the driver's seat and we get to the emergency room of Richmond Hospital about twenty minutes later, the both of us wearing sweatpants. It's almost seven o'clock in the morning now, but it's only just starting to get light outside.

A triage nurse asks about my symptoms and checks my vital signs, and after that we're sent off to the waiting room with some papers I have to fill in. I guess it's only logical that my injury isn't considered a real emergency, since there isn't much you can do about broken or bruised ribs.